Page 12 - Gateways_2018_summer_RGB_Neat

News Bites

SCIENCE

Scaling Up Security

Brookfield Zoo’s pangolins are helping combat poaching.
These shy, cat-size mammals are the most illegally trafficked animal in the

world—the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that
since 2000, more than one million pangolins have been trafficked, as their
meat and scales are in high demand for their supposed health benefits.

Because of this, these animals have become incredibly rare, both in the
wild and in institutions.

Depiction of a pangolin (left)
and a close-up look at
pangolin scales (far left).

Brookfield Zoo is one of the few institutions accredited by the
Association of Zoos and Aquariums to house this fascinating
mammal (we currently have 11 white-bellied pangolins behind

the scenes and one on exhibit in Habitat Africa! The Forest), which
is why U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services (FWS) recently turned to us
for help in detecting pangolin scales that might be entering the
U.S. illegally.

Animal care staff collected some of our pangolins’ scales—
which regularly break or chip off—and donated them to FWS
to help in the training of their “wildlife detector dogs.” These

four-legged sleuths each work with a specific handler to
sniff out smuggled items in luggage, packages, and cargo
at airports and post offices. There is currently a dog-and-

handler team at O’Hare International Airport, along with
teams in Los Angeles; Anchorage; Miami; Houston;
Hawaii; and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

For the dogs, the training is more fun than work.
They receive plenty of positive reinforcement, along
with a treat when they detect a hidden item, and

sniffing the different items provides them with
important mental and physical stimulation.

These dogs have previously been trained to
catch the scent of elephant, rhino, python, sea
horse, and sea turtle items. Our contribution

of pangolin scales will help them add this
frequently hunted creature to their list. These
dogs’ superior noses—and their practice with

our scales—will hopefully become a powerful
deterrent to anyone thinking of trafficking
pangolin scales. █

12 GATEWAYS | NEWS BITES